Chapter 11: The Devil's Chains Break
It charged again—roaring like a freight train. Ardian sprinted, weaving between goblins and crumbling walls, drawing the Minotaur away from the sigil's center. Every step he took left the enemy forces further behind. Every second bought was another for his allies to thin their numbers.
Behind them, Suitomo roared a command—his troops slamming into the goblin swarm like a tidal wave. Sutri's shrill war cry echoed down the stairwell. The sound of flesh tearing, magic detonating, and steel crashing rang through the fourth floor like a demonic symphony.
The Minotaur struck again.
Ardian barely dodged, but the shockwave threw him against a pillar. His ribs screamed. He slid down the stone, coughing violently.
"Still standing?" the Minotaur mocked. "Your end is slow. Painful. But I admire your arrogance."
Ardian wiped blood from his mouth, smiling through his bruised face. "Arrogance? Nah. This is called confidence... mixed with a hint of suicidal stupidity."
A thunderous crash echoed throughout the cursed building as Ardian leapt and dodged with lightning speed, avoiding relentless attacks from the monstrous overlord of this place. The enormous battle axe swung with savage fury, but not once did the young man flinch.
Hearing the rumbling chaos, Rendy grew anxious.
"You good, bro!?" Rendy shouted while smashing a goblin flying toward him.
"Chill! You just focus on your part. This grumpy beast? I'll handle him!" Ardian replied casually, flipping over the Minotaur's swinging axe with ease.
"What the hell is this guy made of? A rubber ball? Bounces like crazy..." muttered the Minotaur, frustrated that none of his attacks landed.
"You have foul mouth, huh!? Come here, lemme educate you with a punch!"
Again, Ardian dodged an axe swing, landed on the Minotaur's arm, then launched himself straight at its face. Like a thunderbolt, his kick hit the beast square in the mouth, knocking it back.
"Chew on that, ugly! Might teach you to shut your trap!"
Without wasting a second, Ardian bolted toward the sigil in the center of the room—but of course, the goblin minions weren't about to let him through.
"Move… or be destroyed. Your call," Ardian said calmly, his voice sharp with threat.
The goblins snarled, their eyes glowing red. They clearly weren't moving.
"Alright, then…"
While still running, Ardian's shadow expanded—and from it burst hundreds, even thousands of small rats, swarming over the goblins like a supernatural tsunami. Within seconds, the creatures were swept aside, flying out the building like a torrential storm in the dead of night.
On the other side of the room, Rendy struggled to hold off goblins with a magical barrier he could barely maintain.
"Hurry up, man! I can't hold this forever! This ain't playtime, we're on the clock!" he yelled through gritted teeth.
Ardian didn't waste the chance. He dashed to the center, pulled out a knife, and began carving Greek symbols into the sigil—modifying it from a summoning seal into a return seal.
But just as he bowed over the sigil, a massive shadow loomed over him.
The Minotaur was right behind him, axe raised high, roaring, "DIE, CHILD OF ADAM!"
BOOM!
A loud collision shook the building—Suitomo had tackled the Minotaur with all his might.
"You lowly beast!" Minotaur bellowed and punched Suitomo hard across the face, sending him flying back. But the old warrior just grinned.
From his back, the white snake darted out and sank its fangs into the Minotaur's left shoulder. The bite dug deep—but the Minotaur only hissed, unfazed.
"Poison? Hah! You think this can stop me? Keep dreaming, weakling!"
The axe rose again to strike the snake—but three black wolves pounced from the shadows, clamping onto the Minotaur's arms, stalling the swing. The white snake quickly coiled around the beast's body, binding him tight.
Seeing this, Suitomo stood tall, eyes glistening.
"You cursed creature… who trampled over others for your own gain… Today, I return the pain you gave to my kin!"
With all his strength, Suitomo slammed his twin maces into the Minotaur's gut, sending him crashing into the wall.
The wolves and the snake released him, landing beside Suitomo. They breathed a moment of relief… but—
"Hehehe… HAHAHAHAHA!!"
The Minotaur's laughter shook the walls and cracked the floor.
Everyone in the room—Rendy, Suitomo, the spirits—felt the overwhelming surge of negative energy.
"Excellent… you are impressive! For centuries, no battle has excited me this much!"
Golden chains on the Minotaur's body flared with blinding red light. So did his eyes. Lava dripped from his axe, melting the floor beneath.
He stepped forward, smiling like a devil.
"Your blood! Your heads! I'll decorate my walls with your bones!"
But then, a voice cut in.
"You that sure you're gonna win, tough guy?"
Ardian stood calmly, sweat dripping from his temple. His shadow stretched unnaturally beneath him.
"You…" the Minotaur snarled.
"Name's Ardian. Ghost Detective. And guess what?"
"What?"
"Suitomo, White Snake, and the Black Rats… they were just distractions while I also the distraction. Double distraction if you may call it. You fell for it." Ardian smirked.
The sigil behind him began to glow.
"So it turns out… you're not as smart as I thought, Servant of the Demon Greed."
The Minotaur growled. Ardian flipped him off.
"YOU DARE, CHILD OF ADAM!?"
The Minotaur charged, axe raised—but Ardian didn't move. Hundreds of rats clung to his body.
With a single slash, Ardian's body was shredded… but he was already gone.
"Teleportation…?" the Minotaur muttered, turning around. Ardian now stood in a corner of the room.
He closed his eyes, centering his heart and mind in one final prayer.
Suddenly, everything fell silent. Time slowed.
In his mind, Ardian saw his mother's face… his father's… Kinanti, smiling faintly while flipping him off… and Putriani, who quietly always believed in him. Rendy, his ever-loyal partner.
"If I fail… this place will never be at peace. People will keep getting misled… I can't let that happen."
He opened his eyes—sharp, resolute.
"In the name of God, the Most Gracious, Most Merciful, and Most Powerful… return this place to what it was meant to be!"
"NO!! STOP, HUMAN!!"
Too late.
The sigil exploded in blinding light, engulfing the entire building.
"Rendy, Suitomo—grab something! Don't let go!" Ardian shouted.
A storm-like wind roared through. Debris flew. Goblins from upper floors were sucked in, tumbling toward the center, akin to a black hole that sucking everything.
The ritual had reversed—from summoning to return.
The Minotaur and his army, born of the sigil, were now being pulled back—like stars into a black hole.
The Minotaur stared at Ardian with rage… but behind it, fear. His pride and glory crumbled.
The lowly human beat him in both fight and brain. The mortal that outsmarted a Demon.
His eyes, once burning with triumphant bloodlust, now flickered with disbelief. He took a trembling step forward, as if trying to resist the pull—not just of the sigil, but of fate itself.
The chains on his body rattled like shackles returning to the underworld. Ash and embers peeled from his frame. In that fleeting moment, the monster wasn't a worth to be called leader. He was just a relic of wrath, being returned by the will of something greater.
"No… this cannot be…" he whispered, voice fractured. "All I built… all I crushed…"
But then his expression shifted—fear twisting into hatred once more.
"Remember this, child of Adam! I will keep leading mankind astray… until the final day!"
Ardian calmly replied, "And I'll keep fighting your kind… until my last breath."
Their eyes locked—then the Minotaur and his minions vanished, swallowed by the blazing seal.
Let me know if you want to add a short aftermath scene or a cliffhanger tease for the next chapter.
Silence returned to the cursed building.
"Praise be to the Almighty," Ardian whispered. His body weak, but his smile… never left.